City of Delusion
by T3ebz
Summary: Years have passed since the day Naruto left and Sakura has been given a job that puts her basically on "standby". When an A Rank mission comes her way she takes it without question, and is surprised when none other than her old teacher gets partnered with her for the task.


**Author note**: While this is not my first go at fanfiction, it has been some time since I've written a thing. I love constructive criticism so please don't be shy.

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**Urgent Summons**

The sky was grey and dark that bleak morning when the first snow fell. She could feel it chill her bones as she woke in her overlarge bed alone. Roseate locks pooled over the sides of her pillow and she curled up under her heavy comforter while shuddering slightly. A soft knocking on her bedroom window alerted her to company.

"Sakura-sama." The gritty voice beckoned to her through the pane of glass adjacent to her.

"Yes?" She answered softly, as she slowly peeked towards the alabaster clock ticking away on her oak end table.

"Tsunade-sama has requested to see you." Was all the voice had offered her in return. She slowly pushed back her sheets and allowed the frigid temperature to cool her bare peach skin. Goosebumps drew themselves across her body as she rose from her bed and placed warm feet on the cherry wood floor below her.

'Perfect.' Was the word she thought solemnly. She couldn't hear if the man had left or not. 'Anbu were always so quiet' she thought to herself. When Sakura was young she had always wondered how many peeping toms there were in the anbu group. Back then she was still naive to the world, and the only thing she thought of was Sasuke and ninjutsu. As she grew, and situations changed, she became more mature. She spent less time trivializing over her appearance, and more time perfecting her craft. She changed quickly into appropriate attire and then threw open her dark curtains.

The village was a buzz with activity as its shop keepers winterized their businesses and homes, and a few genin teams cleaned the streets. She remembered back to their time as errand runners and smiled a slow soft smile. To her, they were the best, as well rounded as they were. Her and her teammates. She opened the window, and climbed out as she pulled her red mask into place above her nose. Turning slightly, she closed the pane behind her, and vanished in a puff of smoke.

When she arrived at the Academy's administration offices the snow was falling in full force. Hurriedly she pulled the main door open and rushed inside. Her heels echoed as she walked towards the hokage's office. The floor tiles were rough with scratches from a thousand feet before hers, and the wear and tear of the grime that built up on their shoes. A sigh escaped her as she reached the large door to Tsunade's office and Sakura reached for the knob when she heard her named called from within.

"Come in." the voice said, rough from excessive sake and long hours of use. She pushed the door open and walked inside. The room had been in worse condition before. Paperwork was scattered amongst the stacks of reference books and miscellaneous scrolls that she kept handy, and the symbol for Konoha had been repainted on the front of her pine desk. The large windows clear from smudges as the snow fell softly beyond them. Tsunade sat slouched in her blue high back chair with her hands placed firmly under her chin.

"I have a job for you..."

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Sakura stepped out of the administration building. A vacation. She closed her eyes as she stretched on the side of the road. With Sasuke and Naruto gone, she hadn't had much else to do other than train with her mentor and volunteer around town. So a vacation would be quite different for her. A wisp of silver passed by the corner of her eye and she turned to see what it was.

"Yo, Sakura" The deep voice let out casually. With one hand holding his book, and the other in his pocket, he smiled at her. He looked a little worn from traveling but otherwise in good spirits. He must have just finished reporting in.

"Oh, Kakashi-sensei!" She started. "Back from your mission already?" His gazed shifted from the book in his hand to the young woman before him, and a breeze ruffled his hair.

"Ah, yes. Just got back less than an hour ago." He stated, beginning to walk towards the main road. "Just about to head for a meal. Care to join me?" She fell into step beside him, placed a finger on her chin and squinted suspiciously. He seemed to not notice her glare.

"Hmm," Dropping her hand from her face, she placed it around her middle and sighed. "Well, I am a little hungry, Just don't expect me to pay for you, Sensei." She stated simply as they walked. Dust flittered up slightly from each step they took and Kakashi raised a hand to the back of his head.

"I'm shocked you would think I would expect something like that." He whined as she laughed under her breath. He noticed how mellow Sakura had become over the years and he was surprised at how well this personality change suited her. Her pink hair had grown out once more to the middle of her back, and she had filled out quite nicely. It was good to see that Sakura was also doing so well as a medic under Tsunade's tutileage and he was genuinely quite happy for her. Sakura felt eyes on her and she looked up at him.

"Is there something on my face?" She asked simply. He shook his head and waved his free hand as if to say no then looked ahead of him once more. Once they had arrived at Ichiraku, Kakashi pulled back the small curtain for her to walk through, and received her smile with ease. He put his book away and sat on the stool beside her.

"Welcome! What can I get for you?" The shop keeper called out in a boisterous voice. They placed their order and sat in comfortable silence until Sakura looked over at him slowly.

"Hey, Sensei?" She said as her brows furrowed slightly.

"Hmm?" He hummed while he prepared his utensils.

"Are you busy tomorrow?" She asked. He turned his head towards her and met her gaze. She had a strand of her hair in her hands and seemed a little uncomfortable with the question.

"No, actually. Why do you ask?" He said as he accepted his noodles from the owner and placed the bowl softly on the counter before him. She paused for a moment as she placed a cloth on her lap and took up her chopsticks.

"I was just wondering we could meet up is all." She said into her bowl without looking back at him. He raised his brow and thought for a moment. He blew cool air onto his meal, then looked back at her with a soft smile.

"Of course. When would you like?" He took a quick bite while she was concentrating on her bowl and replaced his mask. The steam rose from her dish as she stirred and mixed it. She hissed softly when a bit of broth splashed onto her hand so without thinking he rached over, took her hand in his and placed his cloth napkin on the spot to dry it for her.

"Oh, um, thank you" She said. "How about meet at my house for eleven a.m.?" When she looked back over to him his noodles were gone, his chopsticks were down and his mask was firmly back in place.

"Sure Sakura. It's a date." He said as he winked at her. He stood, and taking out his wallet he handed the owner enough yen for both their bowls. "I'll see you then." he finished as he ducked out of the shop and pulling out his book, vanished.

"A date?"

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**Author note**: Thanks for reading. Let me know what you think.


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